Living in a Car When You’re SICK & INJURED (What I Do) | Van Life

How's it going everybody? I'm Nikki Delventhal and this is my dog Camper Delventhal. We lived in a Prius full-time for three years but now we're in a 4x4 Sprinter and we're here to take you along on the wild ride. So fasten up your seat belts and let's have some fun. Don't forget if you like what you see, like, subscribe, comment, share with your friends and turn on notifications. Camper and I would be so thankful. On last week's episode, Camper and I enjoy a relaxing morning on the beach before starting a hike to a gorgeous waterfall. We even decided to take a little shower. After our hike, we seek out a new coastal spot for clam chowder. We leave off our adventures picking a new waterfront camp spot where we make some new friends and enjoy the sunset together. Good morning. Oh yeah, we really screwed this one up. You mean you messed up this time. Oh boy. All right, should we tell them? Yeah, maybe we should. All right, let's tell them. All right, you guys. So, uh, I broke my toe. I think that was pretty obvious, but pretty badly. Ironically, it wasn't on an epic outdoor adventure. It was tandem scootering in the city. Go figure. But I'm so glad I ended up going to the doctor because now I have peace of mind. I know it's not going to get worse. I know how much time it's going to take. So it was worth it. So one tip I have when I'm on the road and I am navigating an injury or sickness is I will call around to all the different walk-ins and doctors and I will ask for cash prices. I will ask for discounts and I will make a decision based on that. And I'm telling you, calling around and doing your homework will save you so much money. This appointment could have been upwards to a thousand dollars, but I was able to get it down to around 250 out of pocket. All right, we'll get deeper into this a little bit later, but for now we're going to hit the road and get into nature. I heard about this one spot that's supposed to be super cool. It's kind of tough to get to, so hopefully we can get there. Excuse me, mister. All right. It's so much harder I probably should have secured everything a little better. Oh, that's a dip. Whoa. This road is getting tougher and tougher. Oh my goodness. Can't slow down. No slowing down. No slowing down. We got some deep divots we got to get through on this end. All right. Oh, come on. Come on. We're stuck. Let's see if we can reverse out of this right here a little bit. Oh my gosh. Whoa. We did it. We did it. Come on. All the way up. Oh, we did it. Oh yeah. This is it. Although we are definitely going to need some leveling blocks here. Okay. This is so much work with a bad foot. All right. We're going to get as level as we possibly can here. Like a glove. Are we even though? Not really. Better than before, so that'll just have to do. All right, camp. You ready to check out the spot? Come on. Wow. I cannot believe we have this all to ourselves. It is absolutely gorgeous out and this water is calling our name. So I think we're going to have We're headed back to the van. I have a very special sushi dinner we are making together. What pajamas do we want? You know what? I was always told you should clean up before dinner. Now that is so much better. Now we can change and eat. Sushi time. I did a little prep already, so I'm really excited. All right. Sushi rice, strips. Now we're ready. You ready for dinner? Good boy. You guys ready for this? Oh my goodness. Nicole Delventhal, you have outdone yourself. We've got to do this more often. We're going to eat some of this up and then we're going to talk sickness and injury on the road. Before we dive on in, I do want to make one thing clear. This video is from my perspective and to help people who are in my similar position, those who are choosing to be in their vehicles, who can pay for their basic daily needs, who have health insurance and are doing all right. This is in no way to desensitize homelessness or take away from the fact that this is a huge problem. I'm giving you information from my perspective from eight plus years of choosing to travel full time and all the things I've learned because I wish I had this information when I first started. All right. Number one, let's just nip this in the bud. Last time I was sick, everyone said, go to the ER. It's free. Just an FYI, that is not the case. There's a lot of information around it. It's something that I don't think is worth touching on. But if you go in there with an emergency, that's not an emergency. Will your insurance pick it up? Possibly. I haven't tried it, but my guess is no because they won't do it anywhere else. But also the hospital is not going to pay for that unless you actually are in need. So they're going to come after you with collectors, things like that. And who knows how much it's going to be. So I like to save the actual emergency room hospital visits for actual emergencies. And that's why I have my health insurance. Besides that, I'm pretty sure you get fined on taxes. Catastrophic. If I'm in the hospital, I do not want to lose everything I have. Also, once again, so I have a health insurance through Texas. They do not have a nationwide plan given by the government. I don't get subsidies. I don't get anything like that. I just went on the government website and went shopping for one. They just don't have a nationwide plan that is affordable or that people who have used it said that they paid you back because apparently a lot of them don't. So, OK, before we move on to the next thing, you might be someone who is looking into health care. I assume that's why you might be on this video. So first thing you do is look at your domicile address, check out the state, go on to the marketplace or whatever it is and see if you have a nationwide plan. Unfortunately, like I said, mine does not. I don't get subsidies. I don't get anything like that. Yeah, but of course, if anyone knows of any, please let me know. I've looked into some in the past and they were just extremely expensive or I found out that that insurance company never actually reimbursed you for all the costs. Another thing to look at is the deductible. So even if you do have nationwide insurance, sometimes the cash prices are a lot better because you have a ten thousand dollar deductible, things like that. So that's what I look at when I'm shopping around. Now, this brings me to my next point. So you don't always have to see a doctor in house where you can maybe telephone into your primary in your state or use a Teladoc type service, which I have done quite a bit. These online and telephone doctors do everything from pink eye, UTIs, bacterial infections, all the things. And all you have to do is get on a little chat or a little phone call. And next thing you know, you have a script in the next twenty four hours. So that is something that is amazing. But they also have medication discounts. I think the last time I did one, I was seventy five dollars out of pocket, which was unbelievable. So pretty much there are options for nomads. It just takes a lot of work, a lot of research. But at the end of the day, I think I'm actually saving more money not having nationwide insurance because I do take the time to find the right doctors, find the right means. I've also been very lucky to be a very healthy person who's always eating clean. I don't drink a lot of alcohol. I don't do any drugs. So I do believe lifestyle and prevention is a big thing. But listen, this is all just my opinion. I have not state and facts, just my beliefs. So do your research. It definitely, definitely, definitely pays off. Another big question I always get is travel insurance. So I actually used to sell travel insurance when I worked as a tour guide. I did some international logistics, so I learned a lot about it. And that is for short term when you're going places. It would be just astronomical the prices to do that full time. Is it good? Sure. But it is no means for full time or long term or you are going to be out a lot of cash. Once again, I am not a doctor. I'm not a professional. I'm just telling you my opinion from my experiences. So hopefully you can take them in and make your own judgments on them and maybe it will help you out. Hope that helps. If you have any questions, throw them in the comments. I can make another video. I'll answer down there. But truly, this is a topic that I think it would be nice to get a conversation going because if someone does know anything, it would be nice to have that down there. And if we find a solution, I will pin it. All right. I'm going to clean feet before we get in bed. Talk about brushing your teeth with a view. Man, that is a big moon. I just want to go hiking to the waterfall that I saw. Good boy. I've been thinking about this moment since I went to bed. I'm so excited for coffee today. Getting my coffee from Idaho. This is the best coffee literally on the planet. Fresh grinds, baby. A couple of beans on the floor just to add flavor. Fresh grinds. Amazing. Taking in the views, my dude? I got this new stuff I'm really excited to try. It is honey infused with lion's mane and cardamom and all this other healthy stuff. Wasn't ready for that. Pretty good actually. You guys hear that? That is true peace and serenity. Not even another human building car for miles. It really is so rare these days to have this. All you hear is the waterfall, the birds, the bees, the leaves and the wind. If you haven't experienced this, I highly recommend trying to find a place like this because you don't realize how stressed you are in your days and how much stimulation you have constantly until you feel moments like this. When you realize this is really what life is about. It's about slowing down. It's about appreciating all the things around you, the humans in your life, the animals in your life and realizing that less is more. I have a lot of that to thank to you guys for supporting us by watching our videos and just being a part of the family. I couldn't do it without you all. What's up, camp? Same outfit as yesterday? Don't mind if I do. I feel like since I hurt my foot last week, I really haven't been able to work out or move. And I am someone who thrives in movement and can even get a little depressed when I'm not. So I think we're going to attempt to do our first low impact upper body workout. One plate, less waste. Love that stuff. All right, friends, we are going to park it here until we run out of supplies and water and we will see you all this time next week. Have a good one.